Tendershipping Drabbles
by RosalindHawkins
Summary: (Ryou Bakura x Yami Bakura) Things happen behind closed soul-room doors, the kinds of things that Ryou would never tell his friends about. / Tendershipping drabbles that will be added to intermittently, covering their secret relationship through canon events. Please read and review!
1. Ferry to Duelist Kingdom

**Author Notes:** Tendershipping as requested! Takes place on the yacht to Duelist Kingdom.

* * *

Ryou lay his head down on the pillow and closed his eyes, as if to sleep for the night, but before he slipped into sleep, as he floated in that strange, detached state of semi-consciousness, he forced himself into his own soul room.

He found himself standing there and didn't even pause as he left it behind to seek out the Spirit in _his_ soul room. The Spirit of the Millennium Ring had a very dangerous soul room indeed, full of shadows, mirages, illusions. Nothing was what it seemed to be, and Ryou knew from first-hand experience that it was very easy to fall into dire peril here.

"Bakura, come out here!" he called, trying to keep the fear he felt out of his voice. His yami materialized out of the shadows, striding towards Ryou with a cocky grin.

"You called?" he asked languidly, putting his arms around the teen and pulling him close. Ryou became flustered, knowing that he was just trying to distract him from his purpose.

"We're on our way to Duelist Kingdom, just like you asked," he said, starting to blush as Bakura brushed his lips over Ryou's ear. The teen pressed his hands to Bakura's shoulders to keep him from getting too close before Ryou reached his point. "But I want you to promise that you're not going to hurt them while we're there."

"Why should I make such a promise?" the ancient demon whispered as he brushed his lips across Ryou's neck, making the sensitive boy shudder.

"Because I care about them, and if you hurt them, then I really _will_ get rid of you for good."

"Come now, Yadonushi, you know that there's no way to separate the two of us now. We are _one_." He froze in his tender teasing as realization hit him, then he let out a laugh and glanced at his host's grim, flushed face. "You would _kill_ yourself to stop me from hurting people who hardly remember that you exist?"

"They're my _friends_ , and they're not _that_ bad, you know that," Ryou insisted as Bakura tucked Ryou's hips against his. They stood at the same height with the same proportions, which made their intimacy always feel strange to Ryou. It wasn't natural. It made him feel like a clone.

"And you know that they care less for you than you do for them, don't you?" Bakura tucked a stray lock of white hair behind Ryou's ear as he brought his head up to look his lover in the eye. Ryou let out a low sigh.

"Yes, I know."

"And you know that I care more for you than all of them combined, don't you?" Bakura smirked at Ryou's confused expression.

"Are you trying to say that they care for me so little that when it's added up, it's easy to surpass that level, or are—" Bakura silenced him with a sudden kiss, slipping his tongue into Ryou's open mouth. Ryou finally gave in and put his arms around the Spirit, letting himself relax into the embrace.

"You should really stop over-thinking things, Yadonushi," he whispered as he lifted Ryou's ass in his hands, then crossed his arms under the other's posterior, carrying him deeper into the shadows as Ryou wrapped his legs around Bakura's waist and nuzzled his head into Bakura's shoulder. "Just take my words for what they are."

"Thank you… for caring," Ryou whispered as he closed his eyes, waiting for Bakura to reach whatever destination he was heading for.

"As I said, we are one. How could I not?" There was an edge to his voice that made Ryou shiver and cling to him more tightly. Those were perhaps the most romantic words the Spirit had ever said to him.

After walking for a long while in steady silence, Ryou felt him come to a stop and kneel before lowering Ryou onto a pile of silky sheets and plush pillows. Ryou opened his eyes and realized that there wasn't very much that he _could_ see in this part of the soul room, it was so very dim. But he could see Bakura's face getting closer as he leaned in for another kiss, this one ending soon as Bakura began to undress his host by tugging his sweater off over his head. Bakura quickly removed his own sweater and Ryou's belt, making the pale Brit squirm a little beneath him.

"Someone's eager tonight, hm?" His husky voice brought heat to Ryou's face, his dark eyes narrowing as they began the strange dance of seduction. Bakura would bite and kiss, scratch and stroke, soothing each wound with a gentleness that most people would never guess the vengeful Spirit possessed. He loved Ryou, but he also loved to make Ryou cry. The pleasure and the pain competed for dominance of Ryou's body, and even if he knew that it didn't have to be like this, Ryou wasn't sure he would have wanted anything else.

Bakura paid attention to him. Bakura never forgot about him or left him behind. They were always on each other's minds. Bakura was the only one who'd ever been bothered by the fact that Ryou got bullied, the only one who'd ever stood up to the bullies on his behalf, and Ryou appreciated it, even when he didn't agree with Bakura's methods of punishment. It was the most care Ryou had ever been shown by a single person, and he wasn't willing to fight the hand that was, in its own way, trying to save him, even when it meant pain, because he understood that it was the only way Bakura knew how to love him. Beggars can't be choosers, not even when it came to love.

This was only their third time laying together, and Ryou was still nervous, still hesitant as Bakura reached for his waistband and began to uncover the lower half of Ryou's body.

"You're shaking like a leaf," Bakura observed in his sultry tones, pulling Ryou's pants off and tossing them away before he crawled upwards and kissed Ryou's hip, the younger one's hands tangling into the Spirit's hair and gripping his head firmly, unable to shake the reservations he felt.

"You're sure nobody will be able to tell?" Ryou asked in a faint whisper before gasping and lifting his hips as Bakura's ministrations aroused a need in him he still struggled to understand.

"I told you before, your body will be unaffected by all of this. The only way for anybody to know what happens here is for you or I to tell them." Bakura found it somewhat annoying and somewhat adorable that Ryou actually cared about what other people thought of him. Ryou's breath hitched as Bakura shifted his focus and began to prepare him.

* * *

They were both panting as Bakura lowered himself to lay beside Ryou and put an arm around his whimpering host. Ryou curled into the curve of Bakura's body, closing his eyes as he winced with pain.

"You know, you could leave now if you want to," Bakura reminded him quietly.

"I know, but I want to stay just a little while longer," Ryou whispered back. Bakura didn't understand why Ryou would stay here with him and with the pain longer than he needed to. It was impractical. But he had to admit, he liked to hold Ryou in his arms for just a bit longer.

"Sleep well, Yadonushi," he murmured into his hikari's hair. "Tomorrow's a big day." Ryou nodded slightly, letting himself slip into the warm, safe darkness of sleep.

Bakura had become the cause and the cure to all of Ryou's pain. It wasn't healthy and it wasn't right, and Ryou knew that he ought to end it, that he ought to leave, to maybe even find someone who could exorcise Bakura from his soul. But if he did that, he'd be all alone again, and Ryou couldn't stand the thought of going back to that empty life of loneliness. Bakura's double-edged love was better than drowning in isolation.


	2. Change Of Heart

"What the _hell_ was that?" Bakura demanded as Ryou shrank back away from him. He didn't move quickly enough, though, and Bakura seized him by the front of his shirt to keep him from running away. "You were supposed to be on _my_ side!"

"I couldn't let you hurt them!" Ryou cried, trying not to let Bakura bully him into submission. "You said that you wouldn't hurt my friends! You promised—"

"I did no such thing," the spirit growled, making his hikari fall silent with fear. "You asked me to promise, but I never did. And even if I _had_ promised, that's no justification for your betrayal." He threw Ryou to the ground hard enough that the boy cried out from the force of the impact. "You made me look like a fool, you little bastard!"

Ryou spasmed as Bakura's foot connected with his stomach, and he curled around himself as he whimpered. Bakura stomped away and stood brooding with a sour expression on his face. Could he spin this in his favor? Was that possible? Yugi and his idiotic friends probably all thought he was gone now, even though he wasn't; that might work to his advantage.

Oh, yes, this was looking good. That would give him the opportunity to sneak away once they were inside Pegasus' castle, since nobody would suspect a thing. They wouldn't suspect anything because they wouldn't _expect_ anything. That would enable him to confront Pegasus and challenge him for his Millennium Eye...

He started when he felt something on his leg, and looked down to see Ryou hugging his calf. Those big brown eyes turned up at him with a child-like plea for forgiveness.

"I'm sorry, Bakura," he whispered, tears streaming down his cheeks. "I'm sorry, I won't..." He choked a little, but kept going. "I won't do it again, I promise. Just please don't stay mad at me..." He couldn't bear to be alone.

"Let go of me!" Bakura snapped, kicking off Ryou's arms, then kneeling down beside him. He seized his chin in one hand and gave him a searing kiss, the kind that burned and stung and sucked the air from your lungs. Bakura moved to bite at Ryou's neck, leaving his host gasping for air and clutching at the spirit for stability.

"Spirit..."

"Shut up, Yadonushi." Bakura unbuckled Ryou's belt and began yanking his pants off, and the teen lifted his hips from the floor to help the process. When His bottom half was completely bare, Ryou expected Bakura to undress too, but he glared at him instead.

"Turn around, on your hands and knees," Bakura ordered crisply, his pants tented from his growing erection. Ryou'd never realized just how much it aroused Bakura to dominate someone else, to be so forceful and harsh. Was he really turned on by violence?

The boy screamed in pain as his alter ego slammed into him from behind with no preparation, those cruel hands tearing long, red streaks down his host's back. Bakura thrust fast and hard, driven by pure physical need and animal instinct more than anything else right now. He only scratched harder when Ryou whimpered and cried, high on the sounds of another's suffering.

When he was done, he shoved the teen away from him, down onto the floor, which Ryou hit with a squeak.

"There, you've done your penance," Bakura growled in disdain, his voice huskier than usual. He turned away again, but when Ryou stood on wobbly legs and hugged Bakura from behind, he didn't push him away.


	3. Post-Duelist Kingdom

**Author Notes:** Angsty tendershipping. Contains depression, suicidal ideation.

* * *

"You tried to leave me!" Ryou exclaimed, his face streaming with tears. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't think. This pain was worse than anything Bakura'd ever done to him before. "You would have preferred to possess Mokuba rather than me!" He turned his back on the Spirit of the Ring, sinking to his knees as he sobbed to the point of nausea.

The one person that he'd come to accept would always be there with him, whether he wanted it or not, had tried to leave him. Was he really so pathetic and unlovable that an evil ancient spirit found him dull and distasteful?

"I don't understand why it matters so much to you," Bakura commented off-hand before taking a drag from his cigarette.

"And you never will," Ryou choked out between his sobs. He wiped his eyes with his sleeve and shakily hauled himself to his feet. "If you don't like sharing a body, then all you had to do was ask, and I would have given it to you."

That caught Bakura's attention.

"You're right: they never notice when I'm gone, or what the difference is between you and I. They don't really care about what happens to me, and neither does anybody else, let alone my family."

The only family member he had who was still alive was his father, and he was never around. If he cared, he'd actually come home once in a while.

"You don't know what it's like to feel so lonely you don't want to live anymore," Ryou sobbed, growing angry with the spirit who'd rudely intruded on his life, added to his desolation, and then attempted to just leave him with the damage at the drop of a hat. "You don't know what it's like to feel like you're dying inside, and everyone around you seems so happy, you just don't want to be a nuisance. You don't know what it's like to wonder why your own father doesn't want you and why you can't seem to make anybody like you, no matter how hard you try." His profuse crying choked him up, and he had to take a few moments to catch his breath. "If you wanted me gone, you didn't have to lie to me and pretend that you cared. I've been ready to die for a long time now. Just say so, and I'll go."

Ryou waited in silence for several long seconds, holding his breath as he anticipated the words that would send him away from the conscious world forever.

"Ryou." A short, simple statement, his name, reached his ears just as Bakura grabbed him by the shoulder, pulled him to his feet, and turned him around, pressing him close and kissing him hard. Bakura's cheeks grew wet with his lighter half's tears.

"I want _you_ ," he whispered before kissing him again. "I wasn't kidnapping Mokuba so I could possess him."

"But you said—!"

"I lied. Why should I tell that dolt my true plans?"

Ryou stared up at Bakura in shock, trying to figure out if he was just lying to him again—or not. Those narrowed brown eyes seemed far too clever, far too peaceful, far too cold for his words to be genuine.

"You're lying."

"I'm not." Bakura stared at his host sourly, about to continue, but Ryou stopped him.

"You're lying again!" he yelled, yanking his arm from Bakura's grasp and stumbling back, revolted at being so close to him. "That's all you _do_ , Bakura! It's all you've ever done! You lie and you lie and you _lie!_ " he was screaming now, but he didn't care. Bakura deserved it. "You never cared about _me_ , the only person you've ever cared about is _yourself_! You pretend to care so you can get me to do whatever you want! Why else would I allow you to fuck me unless I thought you cared?!"

Bakura blinked in surprise at his hikari's language, but Ryou wasn't even close to being done.

"You just want someone you can _use_! You want a tool, a body you can steal, and mine's just not good enough for you! It's weak and pathetic! It's effeminate and short and conspicuous and…"

Ryou dropped to his knees, overwhelmed with self-loathing as he stared down at himself in disgust.

"And weak, and…" he repeated with a sob, leaning forward as he hugged himself and pressed his forehead to the cold marble floor of his soul room. His eyes were shut as he sobbed beyond his control, the emotional pain making him feel like he was being torn apart.

"And beautiful," Bakura added quietly, kneeling before his host and reaching out to touch Ryou's hair in a gentle gesture, only to have his hand smacked away.

"You're such a narcissist," Ryou snapped, his voice snide like never before.

"I was talking about _you_ ," Bakura insisted sharply.

"Liar."

"Pull yourself together, landlord." Bakura was starting to get fed up with this temper tantrum. Or was it a breakdown? Maybe it was both. "You're better than this."

"How would _you_ know? You never cared enough to pay attention to who I am."

"I _do_ care—"

"Then prove it!" Ryou fixed Bakura with a fierce glare. "Get my father to come home. Let me make a few friends of my own. Allow me to take a day to myself and do something that makes me happy. Let me be _happy_ , Bakura."

"I… I can't." Bakura turned away, looking off into the distance as Ryou sobbed again, dropping his head to the floor.

"Then kill me now, Bakura. I only exist so that I can host _you_ after all. There's no reason for me to stay..."

"I can't kill you, Ryou."

There it was. His name again. The second time Bakura had ever called him by his name.

"Why not?" the teen demanded, driven to a new brink of desperation. "You have no problem killing other people!"

"Because we _are_ one, just like I told you," Bakura murmured, reaching out to his host yet again, grateful that he didn't push him away this time. "I couldn't kill you even if I wanted to."

"Why does it hurt so much to live?" Ryou whimpered, and Bakura gently pulled him up out of himself, cradling him in his arms. He didn't speak, though. He didn't have an answer for him. Ryou would some day end up where he had: angry and vengeful with all of the affection and hope burnt out of him. It was entirely inevitable.

Because they were one.


	4. Before Battle City

**Author Notes** : Takes place during Season One, after Duelist Kingdom, during the Dungeon Dice Monsters and/or Legendary Heroes arcs (where Ryou and Bakura are absent from the anime).

* * *

Fingers twisted into Ryou's hair tugging at the white locks so hard his scalp stung. He squeezed his eyes shut as Bakura held his head down and started to thrust upwards into his hikari's throat. The teen felt like he could hardly breathe, but he couldn't do anything about that. He let his jaw go slack as his yami's cock, slick with his saliva, rammed down his throat.

Ryou was whimpering and whining, wriggling between his yami's legs as this process continued and his need for air got the better of him. Bakura pulled back at last, pausing for just long enough to let his host breathe fresh air before rutting his throat rather fiercely. Ryou's hands clenched the material beneath them as the other finally came, without warning, and spilled his seed into his hikari's throat. Only once he'd swallowed it all and cleaned his member with his tongue did Bakura withdraw himself from the wet cavern of the teen's mouth.

Panting, Ryou lay his cheek against Bakura's clothed thigh and closed his eyes to catch his breath. His yami finally released his hold on Ryou's hair and relaxed into the cushions behind him, looking like an emperor just having been pleased by his harem of one. Now, he stroked Ryou's hair fondly, gazing appreciatively at his pale, bare body.

As lovely as it was, Bakura wished he could have had his old body back. Maybe one day he'd be able to fuck Ryou with that form. He smirked to himself as he imagined Ryou's shock and surprise when he saw him in his former glory.

"Thank you."

The faint hum surprised Bakura out of his reminiscent reverie and he opened his eyes to gaze down at his host. He smiled lazily and wrapped a lock of soft, white hair around his finger.

"You're welcome, Yadonushi." He let the hair slip from his finger and dropped his hand down to caress Ryou's cheek, his hikari pressing into his hand affectionately. "I told you I would make it worth your while, didn't I?"

"Yes," Ryou sighed, closing his eyes again as he huddled closer to Bakura for warmth. Bakura had told him to stay home after Duelist Kingdom, to stay away from his friends and abstain from their little gatherings. Ryou had been hesitant to obey, so in order to sway him, he'd promised to make it "worth his while."

He wasn't completely satisfied just yet, though. He'd serviced Bakura, but now he himself was half-hard and aching. He shifted against Bakura's leg, the stimulation tantalizing him. He shifted again, trying to be subtle about it, but Bakura's chuckle told him that he hadn't been nearly as subtle as he thought.

"Come here, Yadonushi," Bakura instructed, patting his thigh indicatively.

Ryou crawled up towards him and straddled his thigh. Bakura put his arm around the youth's waist and pulled him forward until he was leaning into Bakura's chest and gripping his shoulders to steady himself.

"Fuck yourself on my leg." The raspy command sent shivers down Ryou's spine, and he obeyed without reservation, letting instinct guide his movements as he humped the spirit's thigh. Bakura seemed amused by it, and Ryou was too caught up in the act to care. When he was close, he looked at Bakura's face, whose features had twisted into something akin to scorn, all traces of amusement gone.

The world went dark and Ryou felt like he was falling. Disoriented, he cried out, and found himself waking in his own bed, much to his frustration. He untangled himself from the sheets and sighed heavily as he stared at the ceiling. Why did Bakura do this to him? Why did he bring him to the edge and then abandon him? He did it far too often for Ryou's taste, but the one time he'd tried to broach the subject, Bakura had shut him down. Now Ryou was too scared to say anything about it again, even if he was tiring of it.

Bakura was a free agent: an unpredictable radical who lived by his own rules and nobody else's. It was too much a part of his identity for him to change.


	5. Hospital Dreams

"Bakura? Are you there?" Ryou called out into the darkness of his own mind. He was searching for his other half, his doppelganger, his twin. "Bakura, where are you?" He stumbled through the darkness for a while longer, tripping over gods-knew-what as the ground became increasingly uneven and rough. After falling hard on his ass and hitting his back against something hard, Ryou just gave up and curled into a little ball, hugging his legs to his chest as he continued calling Bakura's name with decreasing volume. It wasn't until he'd given up calling on the spirit that he appeared, approaching silently from behind.

"I didn't call for you, Yadonushi."

His voice startled Ryou, and he scrambled up so that he could face the cross-looking ghost.

"What was _this_ for?" Ryou demanded, pointing to the blood-soaked bandage on his upper left arm. "What on earth were you thinking, Bakura? That bloody hurt!"

"I needed to get your friends to trust Marik, and if they saw Marik helping you, that would get him in their good graces immediately," he explained coolly, indifferent to Ryou's physical pain. "Not that they're particularly good friends, either, but they're so foolish that they would never see their own hypocrisy."

"Why does Marik need them to trust him? What are you two planning?" Ryou had never seen Bakura working _with_ someone else before, and it was concerning. That meant he had twice as much to worry about.

"That's no concern of yours." He waved his hand dismissively. "Is that all you wanted?" Bakura looked impatient, and Ryou started to feel worse than he already did. Bakura didn't want him here, not now, at least. He just wanted Ryou to go away, and he didn't even try to hide it.

"Yeah, that's it."

Ryou turned away, his hand caressing his wound in an attempt to soothe it, his head hanging low as he tried to contain his feelings. A dim light had enveloped them when Bakura had appeared, and as Bakura started walking away, Ryou couldn't help but say one last thing.

"You like him, don't you?" Ryou asked in a faint whisper, his eyes fixed to the floor. Bakura froze and turned around, his eyes glowing red. He started retracing his steps as he glared at Ryou's back.

"Like who?" Bakura asked in a low growl, making the teen shiver.

"Marik." Ryou dared to turn a little and lift his gaze to Bakura's for a single moment, but immediately looked away when met with the fiery rage in the spirit's eyes. "You like him." It wasn't a question this time. Ryou could feel himself sinking into the floor, melting into a puddle under the heat of the other's gaze. He cried out as Bakura grabbed him by the front of his shirt and forced his chin up so that their eyes met.

"If you know what's good for you, you'll keep your questions to yourself." Bakura smashed their mouths together in a rough kiss, but it only made Ryou's chest ache that much more. He slipped his arms around Bakura's waist, though, loosely holding him because he wanted as much as he could get.

Ryou'd never had to compete with someone else for Bakura's attention before, and he hated the feeling. He hated the threat of losing the only friend he had to some beautiful stranger who just walked in out of nowhere and suddenly held Bakura's regard in a way that Ryou never had. A beautiful stranger who could give Bakura more than Ryou ever could.

 _I bet he actually respects Marik_ , Ryou thought bitterly as they kissed, Bakura's teeth scraping against his lips. Even when Ryou could feel his lungs burning for air, he didn't try to pull away. It wasn't until Bakura pulled back a little that Ryou took a breath, gasping noisily as he did. Ryou was surprised when Bakura put his arms around Ryou and held him closer than he ever had before. It was always Ryou who embraced Bakura, never the other way around.

"I'm doing this for us," the Spirit of the Millennium Ring whispered into his ear as he panted.

"Okay." Ryou closed his eyes, burying his face in the pillow of white hair that Bakura's shoulder presented to him. He would just have to trust the thief. He didn't have a choice. He would trust and hope for the best, and hope that Marik didn't stick around for too long. After a short while, Bakura released Ryou and shoved him back, turning away again as he started striding into the darkness.

"Where are you going?" Ryou called, and started to follow him, not wanting to be left behind.

"I have business to attend to—alone."

Ryou froze in place, looking as pathetic as a lost puppy or an abandoned child.

"Business with Marik," Ryou murmured, his words envenomed with envy.

Bakura stopped for a moment, then kept walking. Ryou dissolved into a puddle of angry tears on the jagged stone floor, not caring how much it hurt.

He deserved the pain.


	6. 1st Duel of the Battle City Finals

**Author Notes** : I'm thinking about renaming this story since it's turning from drabbles into more of a plot (with more than just Tendershipping * _wink wink_ *). If you have any ideas, let me know in a _**review** _ below.

* * *

Ryou searched for Bakura in Marik's soul room with an increasing sense of despair. Was Bakura in control right now? He must be, but where were they and what was Bakura doing now? Marik must be with him, because otherwise Ryou wouldn't be able to be here. If they were using their Millennium Items to communicate telepathically, that would explain Ryou's easy access to Marik's mind, where he was convinced he'd find Bakura.

He'd set out on his quest with every intention of winning Bakura back: he'd prepared himself, believing that the only way to get through to Bakura now was to seduce him, remind him of what they had and how they'd started. Maybe if Ryou could just show him just how much he cared for Bakura, he'd lose some of his fascination with Marik. He was starting to lose his confidence, though, the longer he wandered lost and alone in the oppressive atmosphere of the arid tomb that symbolized the former tomb-keeper's soul. He felt claustrophobic, the walls were closing in, and it was getting harder to breathe. He began to stumble, and his panicked mind gave up on the notion of finding Bakura. He just wanted to get _out_. He wanted to leave this labyrinth behind and never come back. Presented with an intersection of path's with three options, Ryou felt like he had no hope of picking the right one, but he picked one anyways and continued onward on shaking legs down the shadowy halls. He tripped—on a rock, or maybe on his own feet—and his knees smacked hard against the stone floor. Hard enough to break his resolve and make him cry.

"Who was I kidding," he muttered sourly as he sat back against the wall and pulled his knees up to his chest. Tears started to slide down his cheeks, but he didn't care. "He probably planned this all along. He probably _wanted_ me to get lost in here so that he'd never have to see me again." His tears dripped from his cheeks to his shirt, and they were still flowing. "He said that he cared, but with Bakura, you never _really_ know." He started to wipe at his cheeks and eyes with the hem of his aqua shirt. "He's a selfish, vicious, cruel"—the more insults he named, the harder he sobbed—"violent, possessive, vindictive, abusive wretch." He used a corner of his shirt to blow his nose, far past the point of caring about his appearance or the state of his clothes. His _real_ clothes would be fine anyways. "How could I _possibly_ love him! Honestly!"

And Ryou _did_ love him, which was why he now felt so much pain. He wanted Bakura back in his arms. He wanted Bakura to _care_ about him again. He wanted Bakura. Period. He _wanted_ him and he felt pathetic for being so desperate.

"You do love him, don't you?"

"Who said that?" Ryou's head snapped up, his eyes darting around as he tried to locate the source.

"You love him, but he pushes you down."

The eerie, calm voice was coming from his left, so Ryou began to crawl towards it. He was still crying a little, but he was curious.

"He says that he cares, that he's grateful for the things you do for him, but the first chance he gets, he locks you away. I'm right, aren't I?"

Ryou reached the source of the voice, so shaken and upset by his nervous breakdown that this new presence couldn't make him more afraid or anxious than he already was. He found a prison cell about a dozen feet from where he'd been sitting, set into the wall with thick bars close together to wall in the creature it contained. The cell was unlit and buried in a tangible darkness, only a pair of narrow glowing eyes.

"How do you know about Bakura?" Ryou asked in a soft whisper.

"I don't know Bakura, but I know someone who acts just like him," the being answered, a hint of a snarl tainting his cool tones. "Marik."

 _That_ certainly got Ryou's attention.

"He does that to you too?" Was he truly not alone in his suffering? Did somebody else know how he felt?

"I was Marik's only friend when he was alone and in pain," the creature hissed, his eyes moving as he shifted his position on the floor. "I was there for him when nobody would listen to him, then he cast me aside and locked me in here."

Ryou opened his eyes wide in shock. Would Bakura do that to him too? Would Ryou some day be like this, imprisoned in his own soul for an eternity of emotional torture at his own hands?

"Who are you?" Ryou asked hesitantly, feeling a kinship with this being.

"My name is Malik. I am Marik's other half."

Ryou automatically and unconsciously pressed his hand to his chest over the scars from the Millennium Ring. "Bakura's my other half, too."

"You love him, but he hurts you," Malik observed in a gravelly voice, tilting his head to the side. " _I_ wouldn't hurt you."

Ryou's breath caught in his throat. He was starting to feel oddly conflicted, even rebellious. He wanted his body back, and Malik deserved to get his own body too.

"They don't _deserve_ their bodies," Malik whispered in a smooth, persuasive voice, crawling forward across the stone floor. Ryou still couldn't see anything of Malik but his eyes. "We don't _deserve_ to be locked up."

"You're right," Ryou breathed, finding himself nodding and agreeing with every word Malik said. Malik crept closer to the metal bars, close enough that Ryou could begin to see the outline of his face, the upward spikes of his hair.

"We've got to beat them down," Malik hissed, his face now pressing against the bars, as close as he could get to his visitor. "I can't do it alone; I'll need your help."

"I'll help you." Ryou swore allegiance to him without a second thought, as if cast under a spell.

"Is that a promise?" Malik held up his right hand, pinky extended between the bars, and Ryou linked pinkies with him as he felt a small smile transform his face.

"I promise."

The gesture alone was so sweet and tender that it touched Ryou's heart in a way that nothing else had in a long time. Moments later, Ryou felt pain and vertigo sweep through him. He gasped sharply and slumped forward against the bars, making Malik lean back in surprise.

"What's wrong?"

"He's... pulling me out..." Ryou managed with difficulty, clutching at his chest in pain.

"You'll come back, though," Malik said forcefully, his eyes looking panicked. "Promise me you'll come back."

"I'll... come back..." Ryou gasped out before his world became black and dizzy and he was _jerked_ out of Marik's soul room and back into his own body with cruel force.

He landed on his feet, but immediately fell to his knees, seizing at his bandaged arm as he felt the infected stab wound flare up in burning pain. He couldn't think. He could hardly breathe. His stomach squelched with hunger and nausea, so much so that he feared he was going to be sick.

"Bakura!" Yami's shout was somewhere ahead of him, but it sounded distant and echoing to the ears of Ryou's ill body. Another deep voice was speaking off to the side, but he couldn't recognize or understand it.

"Please, somebody help me..." Ryou spoke as clearly as he could, but his voice was still a weak quiver. The heavy Duel Disk on his left arm weighed him down and caused him more pain, and now that he was aware of it, he only became more confused. Ryou finally opened his eyes, daring to look around and blink in perplexity at his surroundings. "Where am I? What am I doing here in this duel?" He pushed up his stained sleeve to look at his injury, wondering when it had gotten so bad. "What happened to my arm?"

"... without the Spirit of the Millennium Ring, he is weak. If you attack..."

Those words in his periphery managed to strike right at Ryou's heart, and he lowered his arm, looking at the floor once more. _I'm not weak, I'm sick_ , he thought bitterly to himself. _I'm sick because he doesn't take care of me. I'm sick because nobody cares_. He remembered Malik, then, and clung to that hope as he shivered.

"Please, someone help me," he softly called again, desperate. Where was Bakura? If he was paying any attention to Ryou's plight, he didn't show it. _He's probably speaking with Marik_ , Ryou realized, feeling sicker by the moment. And of course he was being excluded from that conversation, because Bakura didn't think that he mattered enough to know what was going on. Still confused, Ryou felt a shadow fall over his eyes and lost himself again.


	7. Secret Showdown

"You don't stand a ghost of a chance in a duel against me, even with my lighter half to help you." Malik smirked cruelly at the spirit of the Millennium Ring and Marik's transparent spirit.

"You forget that I know your deck and your strategies!" Marik shouted back, confident of their success.

"And _you_ forget that I saw his duel with Yugi earlier," Malik sneered back. "Besides, I have an advantage you didn't foresee."

"What's he talking about?" Bakura hissed, narrowing his eyes at his partner.

"How am I supposed to know!" Marik snapped back in irritation.

Malik chuckled as thick dark fog swirled around their Shadow Game, sealing them in from the outside world and the fierce winds that otherwise might have knocked them off the blimp.

"You're both fools." He laughed scornfully. "You especially." He was looking directly at Bakura.

"We'll see about that when I send you to the Shadow Realm," Bakura scoffed, crossing his arms in an arrogant pose.

"At least I know when my other half has gone missing, but you don't even seem to notice!"

"What?!" Bakura exclaimed amidst demented laughter from his opponent.

"Come on out," Malik murmured, coaxing the pale spirit of Bakura's host out from the shelter of his cape. Ryou timidly peeked out from behind him, rightfully frightened of the shadowy atmosphere pregnant with violence.

"Yadonushi." Bakura didn't say the word so much as breathe it. He seemed frozen in shock and fury, his eyes fixed on his hikari's face.

"That's right, Bakura. Your host has defected in order to aid me in annihilating you both once and for all."

"This is your fault!" Marik turned to face Bakura as he accused him. "If you'd done your part properly, he wouldn't be turning against us!"

"Oh, right, because _you_ have _perfect_ control over _your_ other half!" Bakura spat back, turning away from Malik and Ryou. He couldn't even bear to look at him, and Ryou would be lying if he said he didn't feel guilty. He and Bakura had been together for so long, it was hard not to feel attached to him.

"That's not fair!" Marik felt genuinely insulted and started getting all worked up. "He's the darker half, just like you! You and I both know that the darker half is always stronger, so you should have been able to keep him from betraying us!"

Bakura turned his eyes towards his host again, and his expression was so fearsomely furious that Ryou shrank back, slinking into the shadowy gap between Malik's back and his purple cape.

"You don't have anything to worry about," Malik discretely whispered to him. "I'll protect you from him."

"Thank you." Ryou's voice was scarcely audible. He was too afraid of Bakura to speak up. Yes, he'd wanted to be first in Bakura's eyes and heart and priorities, but some part of him had understood that would never happen. Even so, it had taken much persuasion and much courage for him to betray the spirit that had already betrayed him.

"If you send me to the Shadow Realm, then _he_ will be too," Bakura said pointedly, looking at Malik as he referred to Ryou. "You're no better than I am."

"Actually, he's taken shelter inside my soul. It's a bit of a _tight_ squeeze, but we fit nicely." He smirked as he saw Bakura trying to bite back his anger at Malik's implications. "It looks like I'm actually kinder to him than either of you!"

"How _dare_ you—"

"You've both only ever used him as a pawn," Malik interrupted with an egoistic air. " _I_ have treated him with kindness. _I_ care for him more than you ever could. Maybe if you'd treated him like a person instead of a tool, he wouldn't have left you for me."

"That's rich coming from you!" Marik shouted back, but Bakura remained silent. He was trying to maintain his self-control, but it was hard when Malik was dead set on making him explode.

"Ryou and I are tired of being imprisoned by you," Malik continued, Ryou still cowering out of sight. "We're done with your tyranny and cold, heartless ways." He looked over his shoulder and lifted his billowing cape a little. "Isn't that right, Ry-chan?"

"Don't call him that!" Bakura yelled, finally losing his temper. "Don't you _dare_ call him that!"

"At least I call him by his real name!"

Ryou squeezed his eyes shut and wrapped his arms around his head as they continued to shout at one another, and finally resumed their duel. Bakura was so off-kilter that he couldn't possibly have won. Before he knew it, the duel was finished.

"It's over, Ryou."

Round brown eyes blinked open hesitantly and looked up to see a gentle smile on Malik's face.

"Come, let's enjoy our victory."


End file.
